DIY Fluted Sideboard/Credenza + Glass Doors

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWzug149z50&t=32s

Hello, you. Let me show you how broke my old TV console and built it back up into a dreamy display cabinet.

A few episodes ago, I showed you guys how I built my own TV console from scratch. It was nothing fancy but it served its purpose well. After a while though, as we got more settled in, we realized we desperately needed more storage here, especially for display purposes.

We knew we didn't want too many pieces of furniture in this rented apartment. So instead of getting something brand new, I decided to take apart the TV console and repurpose it into something else.

I wanted the cabinets to have a personalised style, so I added these decorative trims along the edges, then attached the side panels along the trims basically making them into a nice ornamental border. Finally, I added the top and the bottom panels and the legs.

So I had this dream – and I mean a literal dream – where I saw someone had gifted me a beautiful cabinet in a rich forest green colour. It made me so happy, I decided to make that dream into a reality.

But let's just say, I should have listened to Professor Dumbledore.

I primed the credenza with a water-based primer, let it dry for a few hours, and then went in with this gorgeous green chalk paint by Annie Sloan called Amsterdam Green.

For the trims of the side panels and the edges along the top and the bottom panels, I used the same golden paint which I had initially painted my bar cart's dowels.

If you've watched the bar cart episode, you know that I am going to undo this.

Once dry, I measured the centre of the credenza and added a 1 by 1-inch wood panel along it with glue and nails. This is where a quarter-inch thick glass shelf will go.

For the glass doors, I went with a frameless concept, which I installed with the help of these pivot hinges. Pivot hinges can be a little tricky to install so here are a few things you should keep in mind:

• Mark your measurements with a sharp pencil or a pen preferably on a masking tape surface. This will ensure that you get the exact dimensions because you need to be precise to the millimetre. For this, consider the width of the glass door. I used this bead which had the same width as the glass. So you can do something of that sort as well.

• Make sure you are installing these hinges a few millimetres away from the door panel, as in the side of the cabinet, because you don't want the glass doors to brush against that wood.

• Once your measurements are sorted, drill in holes that are as wide and as deep as the caps in which the hinges will be sitting.

Now installing glass doors with the help of pivot hinges can be a job that will test your patience, especially when you are fighting against gravity to fit the top hinges. That's when having a second set of hands would be helpful.

The door installation process kind of knocked me out. I did not shoot most of what happened after that, like the styling process. So here's a picture of what the final product looked like…until, of course, I decided to break it again.

We used the credenza for about a year. And then, I decided to give it another makeover for a couple of reasons.

For starters, the cool-toned green colour was not working with the rest of the room. Our apartment is blessed with a ton of natural light and these dark wood trims, and the sideboard's bluish-green hue was pulling that vibe down. Also, just like with the bar cart, the golden paint had yellowed over time, which really bugged me.

The good thing is, if you can make it once, you can make it again. So I took the sideboard apart once again.

The first step was to break the whole structure down because I wanted to rebuild it with screws instead of nails. I also wanted to do away with the trims because I had a different design in mind.

After taking it apart, I gave it a good sanding – not to get it down to its bare bones but just to get rid of the top coat of the paint. Although, if you are repainting something, it's always a good idea to completely strip its existing paint. I am only skipping this step because, A) I don't have the proper sanding tool, and B) Chalk-painting is a little more forgiving.

After this, I put the credenza back together just as it was, only this time, I used screws instead of nails. And since I had removed the trim, the back panel now had this extra lip, so I just sawed it off with my jigsaw.

Since I was going with a very neutral colour this time, I wanted the credenza to have some sort of textural design that would make it pop and I couldn't think of anything better than a fluted detail on the sides.

The DIY is pretty simple. I got these half-round mouldings from a local lumber shop and cut them to the size of the side panel, which was about 24 inches. Then, I attached them to the credenza with some PVC glue followed by brad nails.

Once they were set in place, I filled the gaps in between with wood filler. This step is crucial otherwise your fluted design will not be seamless from afar.

Next, I lightly sanded and cleaned the surface before going in with Asian Paints Primer. It is very important to gently sand and clean the primed surface in between coats because it is going to ensure that your paint goes on smooth and strong.

To make the painting process easier, I added some furniture legs I got from Amazon. After that, it was finally for the paint.

I'm going with this gorgeous chalk paint in the shade, Desert Dust. I know a lot of people are going to hate this beige colour, especially after that bold green. But I know some people detested the idea of a green piece of furniture in my house in the first place. The point is, I don't think I can make everyone happy, but I can try to make myself happy, and right now, it lies in a neutral style that celebrates my apartment's sunlit and airy ambience. Two years from now, who knows? Maybe I will paint everything bright bubble-gum pink like Nymphadora's hair.

I had to go in with about three coats of paint before the colour finally started to show. After fully drying, it looked majestic.

The camera may not do justice to this colour, so think of freshly made mishti doi or the insides of a freshly baked cake because that's how beautiful this is.

While the wax was curing, I decided to whip up some melamine top coat by Asian Paints. It's basically mixing the sealer with the hardener in a 9:1 ratio. Now the reason I went in with the melamine finish on top of a clear wax coat is because the many windows that make my house so airy and bright also make it very dusty. So I figured, a nice coat of melamine top coat will give the credenza that extra protective layer.

Building a piece of furniture, to me, is like travelling. The journey can be long, tiring and frustrating. But once you are done, once you reach where you were headed, when you stand back and look at what you had been working toward all this time, suddenly all the labour seems worth it. And you are ready to do it all over again.

Styling can be a frustrating process too. I find that the easiest way to tackle this is by adding different heights, layers, textures, etc., all the while sticking to a particular colour palette so that it all looks more intentional and grounded.

Watch the video and let me know what you think. Which of the two credenzas would you want in your home – the bold green or the neutral beige? Or would you prefer the OG TV console after all?

Let me know in the comment section and please do consider subscribing. It helps encourage me to make more of these DIYs. Take care, keep well and I will see you soon again with another beautiful DIY.